When we entered this Craftsman home, dating back to 1914 I could not keep my eyes off of all of the original details that had been kept intact. There was crown molding, wide trim, oak floors and a built-in buffet - all lovingly refinished by the owner.
The owners loved their built-in buffet, but wanted to make some changes.
Some of the original details were not so amazing, the original Kitchen was extremely small. Our clients love to cook, this kitchen was definitely cramping their style and made it difficult to cook together, something they enjoyed. Another problem with this space was its isolation from the Main living area. When this house was built, the kitchen was to be hidden away from the more formal areas of the house behind a door. Today many want a visual connection to the rest of the home to feel connected to the rest of the family as they prepare meals.
Design Solution: The original kitchen was located where the new bathroom and small hallway are shown. The 15' on the back of the house showing the Kitchen and Laundry is a new addition.
The logical place to add more space was behind the Dining Room. (removing the wall pictured above) The Kitchen and the Dining Room would be connected and both spaces would feel larger. Multiple people could be in the Kitchen to cook or socialize. It would have been a waste to lose a piece of history only to add new cabinets and and counter space in the proposed Kitchen.
The answer was to do both. We removed part of the wall and added a kitchen addition. So we saved the buffet to use for serving. There is a hall to the left that accesses the new Bathroom, Laundry Room and Kitchen.
The proposed Kitchen features an island with seating and a 48" dual fuel range. More counter space and storage were one of the owner's requests. This kitchen definitely delivers.
Here is another shot of the original kitchen for reference.
The tile mosaic is from Motawi Tileworks. The range 48" wide.
One of my favorite features are the "all in one" refrigerator and "all in one" freezer. Our clients love to entertain and these make it easier for them to prep food ahead of time.
Adding the addition totally changes the way this house functions for the owners. They can now cook together and entertain with ease.
The 2nd unfortunate feature of this house was there was only 1 bathroom and it was located on the 2nd floor. The goal was to have a full bathroom on the main level to give guests better access and our owners more privacy on the upper level.
The wood for the bathroom counter had been waiting a long time, stored in the basement to become something special.
This little hallway makes it all work. To the right is the Dining Room, to the left is the Bathroom (former Kitchen) and straight ahead is the Kitchen. The Laundry Room is to the left once you enter the Kitchen.
There was some demolition required to add on to the back of the house. A small garage and part of the original kitchen had to be removed to make room for a Kitchen and Laundry Room addition.
Nothing that Rob couldn't handle...
It took a sawsall, some chains, a skid loader and about an hour.
Here is the view of the new Kitchen windows and the back entrance. Directly behind me is the 2 car garage that we added.
A lot was added during this project, I am so glad we got to keep that Buffet!
Here are some pictures of the process...
This is the old exterior wall of the Dining Room. We left the plaster and lath on the Dining Room side of the wall. The opening will allow the visual connection of the Dining Room and new Kitchen.
The house next door was painted approximately 5 or 6 different colors at this point, so I did not feel like we were doing anything crazy here.
Does your home have some amazing features? As well as a few things that you would like to change? We can help!
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